Chapter 728:
After a moment, she grabbed her phone and called someone. “Go ahead with the plan I told you about. Don’t fail me.”
Once William dropped Stella off at her place, she quickly thanked him and slipped inside, closing the door before he could say another word.
William seemed used to her brusque manner and simply turned to leave for his own home.
In the days that followed, things at the research institute stayed surprisingly calm. Stella thought Nina would keep making trouble, but it looked like she was worrying for nothing.
Lately, she hadn’t seen much of Nina at all.
On Thursday, right after finishing up at the institute and getting ready to leave, Stella got a call from her assistant at Nebula.
“Ms. Gilbert, we have a problem!”
Stella’s eyes widened, and she quickly asked what was wrong.
“Marc has taken control of the project we’ve been working on for half a year. The deal they’re offering… it’s like they don’t care about losing money just to get it. This is the third time this month!”
The assistant sounded stressed and urgent, hoping Stella could find a quick fix. But Stella herself was shocked by the news, her mind going completely blank.
“Third time? What do you mean?”
The assistant explained that recently, many important Nebula projects had run into trouble. Partners who’d promised to help suddenly pulled out, and key materials had their prices jacked up unfairly. At first, they thought it was just bad luck, but then they realized the Walsh Group was behind taking over all those projects.
“Wasn’t the Walsh Group having trouble getting partners? How did they suddenly manage to take our projects?”
Stella found it hard to believe that the Walsh Group, with their earlier problems, could snatch her projects. Something fishy was definitely going on.
The assistant sighed deeply. “It’s Nina Carter. She handed a patent over to the Walsh Group, and now they’re bouncing back because of it.”
Stella closed her eyes and drew in a steadying breath. She had thought Nina was laying low, only to realize she was now working with Marc.
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“Got it.” Her voice was hoarse but firm. “Shift priorities for our remaining projects and lock down what we can. We can’t afford delays. And Marc… I’ll figure out how to deal with him.”
Stella told herself to stay calm. Even if the Walsh Group grabbed some projects, she couldn’t lose her cool. The ones still with them had to be completed perfectly.
Hearing Stella’s steady tone, the assistant nodded. “Okay, Ms. Gilbert. I’ll keep things steady here.”
After the call, Stella sat alone in the lab. Outside, the sky was gray and heavy, matching her mood.
She rubbed her temples, her eyes betraying the frustration she felt deep inside. She knew every project at Nebula was the result of endless hours and sweat from the team. With the Walsh Group snatching a few key projects, the team must have felt crushed.
The room was quiet as she leaned back, trying to ease the tension with slow breaths.
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